To all of our new and returning graduate students, summer is here! In this issue of the Graduate Newsletter, you will find stories about notable alums, exciting program modifications, and a number of updates on new opportunities/events geared toward you, our graduate students!

For example, we held our 2nd Annual Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) Event in May and awarded cash prizes to three talented grads—read on to learn more about this innovative, international competition that has events at the state, national and international levels!

Here, at the Graduate School, our top priority is the success and well-being of our students, so rest assured that YOU are at the center of every plan we develop and of every activity we offer. To that end, you’ll read about several innovative programs in this issue of the Grad Newsletter, like our re-envisioned new-student orientation event, which will include a concurrent session for families/partners, in addition to an expanded “community fair” in Whitaker. To keep up with all of these additions, other grad events, job or scholarship announcements, be sure to follow us on social media! Directions on how to friend/follow us, in addition to some fun incentives for doing so, can be found here.

In closing, I hope that your summer semester is already off to a great start, if you’re taking courses. If not, I wish you a rejuvenating summer break with plenty of time for friends and family. Please do not hesitate to let me or my staff know how we can improve your time here at Hood—you can contact us anytime at gofurther@hood.edu or 301-696-3600. I thank you for the diverse talents and leadership you bring—it enriches and strengthens our community!

In 1971, Hood College’s Graduate School began with one program, the Master of Arts in Human Sciences. The program has had a variety of concentrations throughout the past 40+ years, including education, environmental biology, public affairs, nursing, counseling, special education, and management. To reflect its housing within the Psychology & Counseling Department, as well as the interdisciplinary approach of the curriculum, the program has been renamed “Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Behavior.” Many of Hood’s current graduate programs started out as tracks of the degree, as it was initially developed for the human service occupations. You can read more about this development here. Visit the Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Behavior program website for more information.

Recently, our master’s degree in Management of Information Technology (MIT) underwent a name change, in order to align with the industry. The new name for this degree is Management of Information Systems or MIS. With the exception of additional content in data analytics, the former MIT program has not changed. The new MIS name is more universally accepted, describes the program more accurately, and standardizes the name with current industry nomenclature. Thus, given the widespread usage of MIS, we anticipate that this change will be well received among both IT and business companies.

We’ve recruited a number of current students, who enjoy posting on personal social media, like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or other social media platforms (both U.S. and international) to assist with promoting various Grad School events. In exchange for weekly posts/tweets about Hood’s Graduate School this summer, moguls receive an Amazon gift card—just in time to purchase those fall textbooks! This program is open to students from all nationalities, backgrounds and programs. Please contact us at gofurther@hood.edu if you would like to participate! #Moguls4Hood

Hood College is partnering with Frederick Memorial Hospital (FMH) on a community garden that is located right here on campus—all produce grown is being donated to local Frederick families, veterans and senior citizens in need. As of this writing, over 30 bags of fresh produce, spinach, radishes, etc., have been donated to Heartly House, hospice, and many more.
There are 12 “Plot Teams” running all aspects of the garden, and two staff from our office are playing their part—kudos to Susie and April! In addition to the produce plots (equally split between FMH & Hood), there is a healthy pollinator strip of native flowers, which is being maintained by members of our student club, HEAT (Hood’s Environmental Action Team). That’s the buzz!

Last week, the Graduate School hosted our first Iftar Dinner for our Muslim students and beyond. In partnership with the Islamic Society of Frederick County and Imam Yahya Hendi, current Muslim chaplain at Georgetown University and former advisor to U.S. Presidents Obama and George W. Bush, the event was a success! Imam Hendi gave an enlightening talk on how different religious communities must mobilize together in order to achieve peace in these turbulent times. It was an evening of multiculturalism, friendship and great food!

Do you love Hood? Share our Instant Admission event with your colleagues and friends/family with a bachelor’s degree or higher. From humanities and ceramics to education, business and STEM programs, we have the degree to suit everyone! Terminal doctoral, MFA and counseling degrees are also available, so encourage your network to register for this free event TODAY.

We are pleased to welcome Ivana Soce (MBA candidate) and Emily Bernstein (Reading Specialization MS candidate) to our team. Read all about these two talented women here
Emily and Ivana will be assisting our office with social media and posts on our Highlights blog, which features stories on our talented faculty, successful alums, and aspiring current students for all of our 20+ degrees.

We had a wonderful turn-out with 16 competitors across 6 different programs at our 2nd annual 3MT event in May—right after final exams. The 3MT competitions are held at public and private institutions around the country and internationally. The event is open to all current graduate or master’s students, who have graduated in the last academic year. Participants get one slide and three minutes to share their project or research findings from a wide array of disciplines — from the sciences to the humanities and everything in between.

Competitors presented in front of a panel of community judges, their peers, and a number of Hood faculty and staff. There were two prize categories: 1st Place ($600 cash prize) and The People’s Choice Award (based on audience vote–$200 each). Lizzie Terrell (BMS MS grad) took 1st Place with her engaging talk, entitled “Development of a live-cell assay to investigate protein interactions,” and the two People’s Choice Awards went to Maura Page (Humanities MA grad) and Martha Swicegood (MBA grad). Check out the recorded winners at www.hood.edu/3MT or on our YouTube channel.

Do you recall your experience at our orientation event for new grad students? Well, whether you had a positive, neutral or negative experience, we want YOU to help us re-design it. We’re planning a number of updates and improvements from a concurrent Spouse/Partner Orientation to a new format for the evening dinner. Please contact us at gofurther@hood.edu if you would like to play a role in re-imagining our orientation, which will have such a positive impact on your new program peers!

We are always looking for stories about the wonderful accomplishments of our students—both current and alumni. To facilitate the collection of such good news, we have a handy online form for you to use, as often as you like: www.hood.edu/accomplishments
Whether you just presented at a conference or received an academic award or work promotion, we want to know about it! We will feature your news on our social media and gradhighlights.hood.edu.
So what are you waiting for? Click and share: www.hood.edu/accomplishments

Are you a social media maven? Well, friend or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube so that you can stay abreast of all the important happenings here at the College. We have a special incentive right now for our new YouTube account—if you subscribe to our channel, you’ll receive a gift card for lunch at the Blazer. After you subscribe, just send your subscription/screen name to gofurther@hood.edu to claim your prize!

The Graduate Student Association (GSA) rounded out another year of building networks and relationships. Led by a small but enthusiastically committed executive team, the GSA strives to be a support system for students and a presence on campus. During each semester, we supported and held different grad student events: student mixers in Nov, Dec., and April; a new biweekly initiative, Café B4 Class, and graduate involvement sessions such as the Town Hall and the Middle States Reaccreditation.
One interesting outcome from our events: we learned that grad students from a wide range of disciplines attend our events! Attendees varied from the consistent presence of MBA, MIT & BMS students to good showings from students in the ENV, CS, Human Sciences & Humanities programs. We were glad to see even a few professors accepted our invitation to hang out with their students! These responses are what GSA wants to encourage: ways for fellow academics to get to know each other and to share common interests and ideas with each another.
During the April 2017 Grad Student Mixer, we invited students to consider GSA leadership positions, resulting in several students signing up to accept this challenge. We are so excited to work with these students throughout the summer as they transition into new leaders! As we look towards the 2017-2018 year, we are optimistic that Hood College graduate students will continue their support for this young, but important program.